


the only heaven i'll be sent to is when i'm alone with you

by HeartonFire



Series: no one has to know what we do [7]
Category: Daredevil (TV), The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, F/M, First Kiss, First Time, Kastle Smut Week, KastleNetwork, Lack of Communication, Light Dom!Frank if you squint, Light Dom/sub, Mutual Pining, Oral Sex, Sharing a Bed, ksw: sexy sunday
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-23
Updated: 2018-09-23
Packaged: 2019-07-16 01:01:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,442
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16075085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeartonFire/pseuds/HeartonFire
Summary: Frank comes to Karen in the middle of the night and tells her they have to go. When their car breaks down, they get stuck at a bed and breakfast in a small town. The only room left only has one bed. When they wake up in the morning, they’re in a very different place than they were the night before.





	the only heaven i'll be sent to is when i'm alone with you

**Author's Note:**

> sexy sunday: bed sharing; secretly pining for each other

The pounding on her door woke Karen with a start. No one came to visit her these days. If she wanted to see Foggy, they went out or she went to his place. Ellison wasn’t exactly about to come over for a drink. She didn’t have anyone else.

And all that was besides the fact that it was still dark out, and a glance at the clock showed they were still an hour from dawn. She took her gun out of her bag and pointed it at the floor.

She peeked through the peephole and her heart stopped. She threw open the door without a second thought and stared at him.

“Frank,” she breathed.

“Hey,” he grunted, nodding at her. His eyes were shifting all over the hallway, like he was searching for something. “Can I come in?”

“Oh, uh, yeah,” Karen said, standing back to let him in. She put the gun down on the table and studied him as he shuffled past her.

He didn’t settle at all when he came in. He paced to the window, peering out between the blinds at something Karen couldn’t see.

“What’s going on, Frank?” Karen said, stepping up beside him. She couldn’t see anything.

“We have to go.”

“What?” Karen reached for Frank, drawing her hand back as soon as it brushed his shoulder. He tensed under her touch. “What are you talking about?”

“I’ll explain on the way. Grab some stuff. I don’t know how long we’ll be gone.”

He stood sentry by the door until Karen had thrown some clothes into a bag. He was edgy, standing straight at attention like the soldier he was. Something was very wrong. She didn’t ask questions. He was in no mood for it.

“Ready,” she said quietly when she had everything, and he opened the door for her. His hand hovered over the small of her back while he hustled her down to a black car she had never seen before. He guided her to the passenger side, and folded himself into the driver’s seat. “Frank, please tell me what’s happening.”

He grunted something, peeling away from her apartment building with squealing tires. He had never refused to talk to her before. Never hidden anything from her. That wasn’t how this worked.

“Frank,” she said, and his eyes slid over to meet hers. “You can’t pull me out of my apartment in the middle of the night and then not tell me why.”

He sighed, running a hand over his face. “That gang you’re investigating. That threat they sent to the _Bulletin_. That’s what’s happening.”

“That was nothing.” Karen waved a hand. “I get those all the time.”

“I know,” Frank growled. She knew he hated that she investigated crimes and put herself in danger. He knew he couldn’t stop her. “But this one was real.”  
“What? How do you know?” Karen’s heart was racing now, adrenaline building with every press of the accelerator under Frank’s foot.

“There was a car outside your building. Circled a few times, then stopped. Two guys, too many guns.”

Karen glanced behind them. Everything was dark. “You been following me?”

“Only when I have to,” he admitted with a shrug. She found she wasn’t surprised. “They didn’t follow us.”

“So, what do we do?”

“We leave. Go somewhere they wouldn’t expect. Lay low.”

“Okay.”

“Okay.”

* * *

“Damn,” Frank grumbled, slamming his palm on the steering wheel. The car was making a horrible screeching sound, and it was getting so loud now that Karen woke from the doze she had been in for hours.

“Frank?” she said, pushing her hair out of her face. “Where are we?” Her voice was a little hoarse. They had been driving all day. Or, at least, Frank had. He wouldn’t stop. He still wouldn’t tell her where they were going.

Frank glanced at her. She was staring out at the signs that were flashing by on the side of the road. “Illinois?” she said, looking back at him. “Where are you taking me, Frank?”

“Away,” he grunted. Like he told her, he had to get her out of the city. Get her somewhere safe.

Karen sighed. One eyebrow quirked up. “And the car is supposed to be making that noise?”

“No,” Frank said with a scowl. “No. It’s not.”  
Karen shivered a little. Frank turned up the heat. “Why don’t we pull over? Stay somewhere?”

Frank thought it over. He didn’t like it. They needed to get as far from the city as they could. He could keep driving. He would drive her to the Pacific Ocean if that’s what it took to keep her safe. Put a whole continent between them and anyone who would hurt her.

But before he could say any of that, the car coughed and sputtered, and he had no choice but to pull into the parking lot of a small motel by the side of the road. He had stayed off the freeways, and this was about as good as it was going to get.

He followed Karen into the shady-looking office with their bags. She marched right inside and rang the little bell on the counter, craning her neck to try to see if anyone was there. It was starting to get dark, and Frank wondered for a second if they might have to sleep in the car. He’d done it before, but he didn’t want that for Karen. She deserved a bed, a roof over her head, safety. She deserved everything he could give.

He shook his head and saw a middle-aged man appear behind the counter. He smiled at them. Frank saw the man’s eyes scan over Karen from head to toe and he bristled slightly, stepping closer to her.

“Can I help you?”

“Yes, thank you,” Karen said brightly. She didn’t seem to notice anything amiss. If she was bothered by Frank looming over her shoulder, she didn’t let on. He figured she must be used to it by now. Her hulking shadow. “We need a room for the night. And the name of a mechanic.”

“Car trouble?” the man said politely. Karen nodded. “Happy to help. Key to room 227. Last room available. Faces away from the road, so it should be pretty quiet. Breakfast is at seven. I’ll call a tow truck in the morning for you. I just need a credit card and you’ll be all set.”

Frank pulled one of his Pete Castiglione cards out of his pocket and handed it over to the man. He hardly even looked at the name, just ran it through the machine and gave it back to Frank. Frank just had to hope that no one had caught on to his pseudonym in the time since Madani had given him his life back.

“Give a call down if you need anything. There’s a decent diner down the street if you’re hungry. Have a good night, you two.”

Frank took the key from him and nodded, one hand on Karen’s lower back as they made their way to the stairs. For a second, it felt like a normal thing. Like his hand belonged there.

As soon as they started climbing to the second floor, though, his hand fell away and he clenched it against his leg. She was already freaked out enough. He didn’t need to make it worse.

Karen sat on the bed when they got into the room, hands clasped in her lap. Frank set the bags down by the door and locked it behind him. Out of habit, he scanned the room for other points of entry. There were two windows along the wall, and one other door. He crossed the room to look through it into the bathroom. It looked reasonably clean, if not the kind of place he’d normally want to take Karen.

“Frank?” Karen said quietly. She patted the bed next to her.

“You okay?” He said, sitting beside her.

She shrugged. “I guess so.” She looked at him, those blue eyes pinning him in place. His heart stuttered and he almost forgot how to breathe. “I’m just tired of all of this, you know?”

“Tired of what?” Frank choked out.

“Being threatened, running, worrying, all of it.”

Frank’s eyebrows rose. “Think you’re in the wrong profession, then.”

Karen chuckled dryly. “You might be right about that.” She sighed. “I just want to help people.”

“I know. And you do.”

“I guess,” she said, head dropping to her chest. “Sometimes, I think I just make things worse.”

“No,” Frank said, and she looked at him out of the corner of her eyes. “No. You help people. You helped me.”

She shrugged and yawned, trying and failing to cover it with her hands. He could tell she didn’t completely believe him.

“You hungry?” Frank said, trying to change the subject. Trying to distract her from the reason they were both there. Trying to find a way to make her feel better, the only way he knew how.

“I could eat.”

They hadn’t stopped all day, and Frank was fine with the gnawing hunger, almost used to it from stakeouts and patrols, but he knew she had to be starving.

They walked down the block to the diner and slid into a vinyl booth. Frank ordered black coffee and scrambled eggs with bacon. Karen got an iced tea and a BLT with fries.

They didn’t talk much. Not much they could say. Frank was sure that if he opened his mouth, he was going to say something stupid. Something that would make this situation somehow worse for her. Karen seemed lost in her own thoughts, and he didn’t want to disturb her. She had to process this her own way. She always did.

When they got back to the room, the air felt thick with something Frank couldn’t quite name. He nodded at the bed.

“Get some sleep,” he said. “I’ll take the floor.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Karen said. She was staring at him like he had three heads. “It’s a big bed. We can share.”

Frank really did forget how to breathe, then. “No, really. I don’t mind.”

“I do.” She had that look in her eyes that would stand for no argument and he knew he wasn’t going to win this one. She wasn’t going to let him win this one.

“You’re sure?”

“I’m sure.”

“Okay.” He shrugged, like it was no big deal. Maybe it wasn’t. Maybe it didn’t have to be.

She nodded. “Okay.”

* * *

It had been easier than Karen expected to convince Frank to share the bed. She had half expected him to insist on being a martyr and sleep on the hard floor even after she offered to share. But he just shrugged and gave in.

Of course, he wouldn’t even look at her after that. His gaze seemed permanently glued to the floor. She swore she felt his eyes on her when she was brushing her teeth, but when she glanced back, he was staring at his feet. He hadn’t even taken his boots off yet.

Karen slid under the covers, patterned duvet pleasantly heavy on her body. The walls were a sickly yellow, and the wallpaper was peeling in the corners, but the bed was soft and warm and the sheets seemed clean enough.

Her eyes were already closing before Frank joined her. His hair was wet, like he had freshly showered, but she hadn’t heard the water run. Time seemed to be slipping by in unmanageable chunks. She was more exhausted than she thought, despite her nap in the car.

The mattress sank beneath Frank’s weight and he switched off the light. In the dark, the space in the bed felt smaller. Frank was stiff beside her, lying on his back, hands resting on his stomach, trying to take up as little space as possible. Karen felt a sudden urge to turn over, curl against him, but she knew that was the fastest way to get him sleeping on the floor after all.

So, she lay there, facing away from him, staring into the darkness until sleep washed over her. It didn’t take long.

In the morning, the sky was just hinting at dawn and she blinked sleepily, forgetting for a moment where she was. An arm was locked around her waist, warm and strong. She panicked for a second, until she remembered. And then she froze.

Frank was still sleeping, breathing heavily against the back of her neck. Karen had never seen him sleep before. She hadn’t been sure he knew how. She shifted onto her back and looked at him. His long lashes were dark against his cheeks and his face was soft, relaxed. The morning light smoothed the furrows of his face and made him look a decade younger. His hair was growing out again, curls wild against the pillow.

His eyes fluttered open and his arm tightened around her, pulling her into him so they were facing each other. He smiled softly, then blinked again and the smile faded. He started to pull his arm away, muttering something that sounded like an apology, but Karen laid a hand on his forearm. He stilled. His eyes were wide, like a frightened animal. The wrong move might spook him and she had to be careful.

“I’m sorry Karen,” he said, trying not to look at her. “Not used to this.”

“It’s okay, Frank,” she said softly. “Really.” She wanted to tell him she wished she could wake up in his arms every day, that she hadn’t slept so well in over a year, that she wanted him to keep touching her, but that was a sure way to make him bolt. He’d never so much as hug her again. He might stop looking at her entirely.

And what a shame that would be. His brown eyes were warm with sleep, edged in something that she couldn’t quite name.

One of her hands ran over his beard, before she could think about it, like it had a mind of its own. He closed his eyes and Karen breathed, her other hand falling to his bare chest. She felt his pulse pounding under his skin, its pace matching hers. His hand tightened a little on her waist and she felt her body begin to tremble. For a man who was known by so many as a killer, a violent murderer, he was touching her like she might shatter into a million pieces if he wasn’t careful. And maybe she would. Maybe she didn’t care.

He pulled her closer, his body giving off heat like a furnace. He held her to him, like he was afraid she would disappear if he let go. His lips pressed against her temple. Just one, soft press of his mouth against her skin. He had kissed her cheek before. It didn’t mean anything. It didn’t have to mean anything.

“Karen,” he murmured. His voice was gravelly, like he might still be half-asleep, but his eyes were wide open. “Karen.”

She pushed her arms up, around his neck, fingertips trailing through his hair. She had imagined this, wished for it, but he was always so far away, even when he was right beside her.

He kissed her cheek, like he had that day by the river, then her ear, her eyelid. He was so gentle with her, she wanted to cry. She buried her head in his neck and breathed him in.

* * *

Frank wasn’t sure where to go from here. Karen wasn’t pushing him away, but did she want what he wanted? Was he even sure what it was he wanted?

He tilted his head away until she opened her eyes and looked at him. Even though he had seen them so many times before, the blue of her eyes always shot through him like an electric shock. Sometimes they were soft, like the sky, sometimes stormy, like the ocean after a hurricane. But today, they were clear, looking straight through him. He had thought he was dreaming, at first. God knew it wasn’t the first time he’d dreamed this. Somewhere along the way, his nightmares about his family had switched over to visions of blonde hair and blue eyes and her body opening to his.

She felt right, in his arms. He knew it wasn’t safe to stay here like this, but he couldn’t bring himself to move away from her, untangle his limbs from hers. Somehow, her legs had wound around his. It was warm and comfortable here, in this bed, and he was afraid if he moved, the moment would be gone. They might never end up back here.

Karen bit her lip, fingers tracing over his jaw. Her eyes darted from his lips, to his eyes, and back again. Her eyes eased closed and he felt her breath on his face. He leaned closer and finally, finally, finally got what he had dreamed about. What he had wished for. What he had convinced himself he could never have. What he still wasn’t sure he deserved.

Her lips opened under his and she pressed her body against him, soft and supple and so warm he thought he might burst into flames. Her hands tugged at his hair and he swallowed her sighs hungrily. Her teeth grazed his lip and she bit down a little, grinning at the groan that vibrated out of him.

He nudged her over, covering her body with his. Karen’s arms wrapped around his neck and she held him to her, fingers winding into his hair.

He would have been happy to stay there all morning, holding her like that, but Karen squirmed against him, pressing her hips into his until all the blood in his body rushed down to the place where their bodies met.

“Frank,” she moaned against his ear.

“Karen,” he said, teeth sinking into her skin. She hissed and arched her neck, head thrown back in pleasure. Frank let his hands trail over her neck, her collarbones, right up to where her shirt began. His fingertips traced the blush rising in her chest and he pressed kisses to her skin. His beard scratched against her, leaving a faint trail of pink, but she didn’t seem to care.

He found the hem of her shirt and pushed it up, waiting for permission to take it off her. She didn’t wait for him to ask, just grabbed it and pulled it over her head. She wasn’t wearing a bra and Frank froze for a moment. Karen was so beautiful, like one of those ancient statues carved out of marble. But she wasn’t made of stone. She was flesh and blood and soul and heart. And she was here, and she wanted him. For whatever reason, she wanted him.

He sat up, tracing the swell of her breasts with the tip of his finger. Karen was watching him, laying still under his touch. He thought his heart might pound out of his chest. It had been so long since he had done this. He couldn’t breathe.

What was he doing? How could he think he deserved her? How could she settle for him? He pushed himself away from her, head spinning.

“Frank,” Karen said again, holding her arms out to him. “Come here.”

She crushed him to her chest in an embrace that steadied him in a way he couldn’t explain. All he could see was Karen. All he could feel was Karen. All he needed was Karen.

“We don’t have to do this,” she said gently, when his heart had slowed a bit.

He shook his head and pulled himself away from her. She held his face in her hands and he rested his forehead against hers, staring into those impossibly blue eyes. There was no judgment there. There never was. Not with Karen. Not since they reached his after. _Their_ after.

“No. But I want to.”

She smiled and slanted her mouth against his in a kiss that reignited everything he had finally been allowing himself to feel before he panicked. He groaned into her as her fingernails raked over his back. Her hips were circling beneath him and he wasn’t going to last long if she kept that up.

He pressed her hips into the mattress with his palms. “Is that okay?” he said against her neck. She nodded, biting her lip. “Then stay still.” She nodded again and he pulled her pajama pants and panties off in one smooth motion.

Karen whimpered, but stayed as still as she could. He saw her thighs tensing and nudged her legs apart with his hands. Karen’s head fell back and he saw her chest rising and falling in measured breaths as she tried to keep her cool.

Frank kissed her legs, starting at her ankles and moving up to her knees, her thighs, her hips, until she was biting back a cry he was sure would wake the rest of the guests if she let it out. He could see the dewy wetness at her center and when he swiped his tongue over her, the taste of her spread over his tongue and a moan vibrated out of him. She was already so wet, so ready, so eager for him, he had to lay one of his forearms over her stomach to keep her still. She was trying so hard to keep still, and he smiled against her skin at the mewling cries she was making while he devoured her.

It had been a long time, but god, did Frank love the feeling of her, the taste of her, the heat of her. It was better than anything he could have dreamed. When her legs tensed around his head, he slid a finger inside and she pressed her face into the pillow to muffle her scream as her walls pulsed around him.

* * *

It took a few minutes for Karen to collect herself. Frank was still there, between her legs, lapping at her clit like he had never tasted anything so sweet. She tugged on his hair to pull him back up to her, the sensation too much for her after the orgasm that Frank had just pulled from her. She hadn’t even known she could come from oral. Obviously, she just hadn’t done it with the right person before.

Frank wiped his mouth on the sheet and pulled her over so she was on top of him. He was still in his boxer-briefs, and she could see the bulge under the fabric. She was already wet beyond what she knew was possible, but she wanted him so badly it almost hurt. She traced her fingers over the waistband and looked at him. He was staring up at her like she was a goddess. A force of nature. His hands fell to her waist and she ground against him a little. A surge of pleasure raced through her at the grunt that fell from Frank’s throat.

She tugged the fabric down a little, marveling at the strength of him under her fingers. He was so solid. He lifted his hips and helped her pull the boxer-briefs off. Karen’s hand shook when she reached out to touch him, and he threw his head back with a groan when her fingers touched the head. She smeared the bead of pre-come over his skin and smiled down at him.

“I don’t have anything,” he said, voice coming out in hoarse bursts. “For this.” He looked away, like he was embarrassed.

“Frank,” Karen said. “It’s okay. I trust you, and I’m on birth control. I’m clean.”

His eyes snapped back to hers, an animalistic glint in them now that made her shiver. “You’re sure?”

“Yeah,” she breathed, taking him in her hand to sink down over his length. She groaned at the stretch of him as he slid inside. She clutched at his chest, fingernails leaving angry red marks behind. She stayed there for a moment, savoring the feeling of him inside her before she started to move.

She had imagined what it would be like, to be with Frank, but she couldn’t have imagined this.  His fingers dug into her hips so hard she was sure they would bruise, but she didn’t care. The delicious bite of pain made everything else feel that much sharper. Another orgasm was building inside her and Karen ground against him, their hips rolling together at a pace that pushed her over the edge with his name on her lips.

He held her to his chest for a few moments, still hard inside her. He stroked her hair and let her come down from the high before he did anything else.

But then he moved. He lifted her like she weighed nothing and put her down on the bed beside him. “Hands and knees,” he growled. Karen shivered and did what he said. She had never liked doggy style before, but somehow, she thought she might like it now.

Frank slid inside her again and she groaned. He gathered her wrists in one hand and pulled them out in front of her, so she was on her elbows, Frank’s weight pressing her into the mattress. His other hand came around to tease her clit again. She didn’t think it was possible that she could come again, but she felt the pressure building almost instantly.

Frank pounded into her, the sounds of their bodies filthy and wet in the early morning light. When Karen was close, Frank pressed his hand against her mouth and she let out the scream she had been holding back. Her teeth grazed his palm and he shuddered to his own orgasm with a grunt against the back of her neck.

He rolled off her after a moment and pulled her to his side, her head on his shoulder. It was what Karen had wanted the previous night, she realized with a smile. He was still breathing hard, and so was she. Their skin stuck together with the sweat of their exertions, but Karen found she didn’t care. She could stay in that bed forever and be completely content.

* * *

When they finally made it downstairs for breakfast, after another round in the shower, Karen saw the knowing looks the other guests gave them. Frank, on the other hand, didn’t see anything but the way Karen smiled at him over her coffee and the way she blushed when his hand brushed her knee.

The man who had checked them in the night before came over to their table as they were finishing breakfast.

“How was your stay?”

Karen and Frank looked at each other. “It was perfect.”

**Author's Note:**

> We made it! Seven days of Kastle smut in the books, and this one was pretty fun to write. Honestly, it made me want to write a road trip fic with these two, to really stretch out the pining and the bed sharing until everyone explodes, so that might be coming in the future. 
> 
> Anyway, thank you to everyone who's been reading, commenting, and leaving kudos. I have felt so much love from this fandom this week, and it has been such a great experience. You guys are the best, and I hope you liked this one.


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